State
FUEL SPILL, MULTIPLE ACCIDENTS ON I-10 IN JACKSON COUNTY
WXXV
A fuel spill shuts down part of I-10 in Jackson County causing multiple accidents.
Mississippi Highway Patrol Spokesman Chase Elkins tells News 25 an 18-wheeler was leaking about 50 gallons of diesel fuel onto the east bound lane near mile marker 51 so crews shut down the right lane.
http://wxxv25.com/2017/02/13/fuel-spill-multiple-accidents-10-jackson-county/
Crab fishing closing in Louisiana, open for business in Mississippi
Sun Herald
Louisiana is planning a 30-day closure of blue-crab fisheries in state waters, but Mississippi officials don’t expect it to have much effect here.
http://www.sunherald.com/sports/outdoors/article132407209.html
1 bill to strengthen Mississippi governor advances; 1 dies
AP
JACKSON, MISS.
Mississippi legislators have advanced one bill to strengthen the state's constitutionally weak governor but killed another.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/health/article132502709.html
Oil Spill
BP bill survives challenge in state Senate, moves to House
Sun Herald
A bill to create a special fund for BP economic-damages money survived a final challenge in the Mississippi Senate on Monday.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/politics-government/article132499929.html
Lawmakers Working on BP Money Distribution Plan
WUWF
Northwest Florida projects targeted to get money from the Deepwater Horizon settlement would first require the blessings of the Governor and Legislature under a bill proposed by a house committee.
http://wuwf.org/post/lawmakers-working-bp-money-distribution-plan
Regional
Appeals court won't re-hear the 'dusky gopher frog' case
AP
NEW ORLEANS
Advocates for an endangered species of frog have won a victory in a case that's headed for the U.S. Supreme Court.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/business/article132574189.html
National
EPA Settlement of Citizen Suits May End Under Trump
Bloomberg
Settlements of environmental citizen suits brought to compel EPA action could grind to a halt under the Trump administration.
https://www.bna.com/epa-settlement-citizen-n57982083739/
DuPont Settlement of Chemical Exposure Case Seen as ‘Shot in the Arm’ for Other Suits
Lawsuits are over exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid in drinking water
WSJ
A $671 million settlement announced Monday between DuPont Co. and lawyers representing thousands of people in Ohio and West Virginia could bring a swift end to years of litigation there, while fueling cases in other states where people have alleged health problems after a chemical used to make Teflon got into their drinking water.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/dupont-chemours-settle-teflon-chemical-exposure-case-for-671-million-1486987602
Engineers have known for decades that Oroville’s backup spillway was unreliable
McClatchy
Engineers have known for decades that if water ever spilled onto Lake Oroville’s unpaved auxiliary spillway, it would cause serious erosion, possibly compromising the earthen structure that holds back the reservoir and threatening communities downstream.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article132528514.html
Fracking bill may increase states' authority on regulations
Casper Star Tribune
In a move for greater state sovereignty over fracking regulations, Wyoming’s Republican Sens. John Barrasso and Mike Enzi introduced a bill Wednesday that says future federal standards on the drilling technique will come second to existing state rules if those rules are adequate.
http://trib.com/business/energy/fracking-bill-may-increase-states-authority-on-regulations/article_fc940b5c-99d4-5583-bf14-feaac7e744d0.html
Oil-backed climate skeptic could get key EPA job in Pacific Northwest
Oregonian
The man interested in the job of protecting the Northwest's air and water under President Donald Trump makes quick work of some bedrock tenets of the modern-day environmental movement.
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2017/02/oil-backed_climate_skeptic_cou.html
Trump admin. wants Gold King Mine spill case dismissed
The Hill
The Trump administration is asking a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit by New Mexico and the Navajo Nation over a 2015 mine-waste spill caused by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/319309-trump-admin-wants-case-over-mine-spill-dismissed
Press Releases
Feral Swine Initiative Through USDA/NRCS
Jackson, Miss. – The United States Department of Agriculture/Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is accepting applications for the Feral Swine Initiative (FSI) through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Feral hogs are a non-native species to Mississippi and cause serious destruction to crops, crop land and grazing fields. Applications received by March 17, 2017 will be considered in the first ranking period.
FSI is a voluntary conservation program that focuses on using management practices to address conservation issues related to the over population and destruction from wild hogs in Mississippi. Over population of wild hogs results in damage to Mississippi’s natural resources, causing issues such as soil erosion, water quality degradation, wildlife habitat degradation, and public health/safety. Interested landowners within identified priority areas can apply for assistance.
The specific priority counties identified in northeast Mississippi are Clay, Lowndes, Monroe, Noxubee and Oktibbeha Counties. Counties in central Mississippi are Claiborne, Copiah, Hinds, Rankin and Simpson. Counties in southwestern Mississippi are Adams, Amite, Jefferson, Wilkinson, Lincoln, and Franklin. The counties in the Mississippi Delta are Issaquena, Sharkey, Yazoo, and Warren Counties.
The FSI program allows NRCS staff members to provide land owners with a feral swine population management plan that helps to determine the negative impacts to the natural resources of their tract. As well as a management plan to address the issues present.
All NRCS financial assistance programs offer a continuous sign-up process, however to be considered for Feral Swine Initiative funding in fiscal year 2017, applications must be received by March 17, 2017. NRCS helps America’s farmers, ranchers and land owners conserve the Nation’s soil, water, air and other natural resources. All programs are voluntary and offer science-based solutions that benefit both the landowner and the environment.
To locate your local service center, visit http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/apphttp://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/ms/home/. Applications are available at GetStarted. . For more information, visit our website at
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Pythons nose their way into Florida Keys
A couple of long-disused buildings in the Florida Keys that once sheltered servicemen from missile launches have been sheltering something else – pythons.
Four large crawlers – one, a female, was nearly 16 feet long – turned up within the last month at an old missile base at Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge <https://www.fws.gov/refuge/crocodile_lake/> (NWR), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) reported.
Scientists think the snakes migrated from the Everglades, a fertile breeding ground for the unwanted predators. Now, officials say, the snakes may be poised to head south, where several Keys species are defenseless against the large, invasive reptiles.
Compounding their concerns: Officials this past summer also discovered some hatchling pythons near Key Largo – a strong indication that the snakes have found a welcome habitat and are multiplying.
The latest unwanted snakes turned up in a couple of old bunkers where the U.S. military once had a Nike Hercules missile firing range. The site, closed 30 years ago, is now part of the 6,500-acre Crocodile Lake refuge.
Searchers using trackers and specially trained dogs sniffed out the snakes, said Jeremy Dixon, who manages Crocodile Lake.
“Snakes like deep, dark places,” he said.
They also like black rats, which likely attracted them to the site, Dixon said. The area also is home to hundreds of feral cats, another potential food source.
The easy availability of food, said Dixon, means the pythons could thrive on the Keys just as easily as they have multiplied in the Everglades. For more than two decades, an array of big snakes have spread and bred in the Everglades. Their presence has had a devastating effect on native birds, deer and other species in the park. Some snakes have even managed to devour alligators.
The Florida Wildlife Fish and Wildlife Commission is working with the University of Florida to detect and remove the snakes in the Keys. They are partnering with the Irulas, members of a tribal community from India that’s renowned for its ability to catch snakes. Learn more about those programs <https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/FLFFWCC/bulletins/182564a>.
If you need to report a python, dial the Exotic Species Reporting Hotline:
888-Ive-Got1 (888-483-4681).
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